Posted by Jerome SkalnikComments Off on Porsche Design P’9981 unveiled in black

Jan102013

Porsche Design yesterday a black version of its luxury P’9981 smartphone. Specifications-wise, it is identical to the original P’9981 launched over a year ago. The all-black model is made of a stainless steel frame encased in black plastic with a hand-wrapped leather backing. Like the original, it comes with a customized version of BlackBerry OS 7.1 with Porsche Design icons and the Porsche font. It also includes a premium BBM PIN to help identify other P’9981 users.

“Since the beginning, our brand has been identified with the colour black,” said Juergen Gessler, CEO of the Porsche Design Group. “Our first product was a completely black watch. It was a revolutionary product and was a sensation all over the world. As is typical of Porsche Design, the colour black had a functional significance. The “Chronograph I” was inspired by the non-reflective design of racing car controls, with everything in matte black apart from the instruments. The aim was to ensure a clear and easy-to-read display. The Porsche Design P’9981 Black follows this tradition.”

As a quick reminder, the Porsche Design P’9981 is powered by a 1.2GHz processor, the aforementioned BlackBerry OS 7.1, a 2.8-inch VGA capacitive touchscreen, a QWERTY keyboard, 8GB of onboard storage, a microSD card slot with included 16GB card and a 5MP rear camera.

The P’9981 Black may not be for everyone but if it’s the smartphone you have been waiting for, it will be available starting in mid-January through Porsche Design stores worldwide and online. In Canada, it will be available at Porsche Design Toronto in Yorkville for CA$2,050.

Research In Motion today announced the Porsche Design P’9981 smartphone from BlackBerry, the brand’s first smartphone. As past rumours suggested, it was designed by Porsche Design in collaboration with RIM.

The Porsche Design P’9981 is very similar to the BlackBerry Bold 9900 in terms of specifications but features a forged stainless steel frame, hand-wrapped leather back cover, and a sculpted QWERTY keyboard. BlackBerry OS 7 has been modified with custom Porsche Design icons and uses the Porsche font. It also comes with a bespoke Wikitude World Browser augmented reality app experience and premium BBM PINs to help identify other P’9981 users.

The Porsche Design P’9981 smartphone from BlackBerry will be available from Porsche Design stores later this year.